My views do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.
Tuesday, 28th of January 2025
I can’t tell you how excited I was to be able to go to the place where the famous cheese comes from. On the ride to Gouda, our tour guide explained what made Gouda cheese so special. Most of the Netherlands is below sea level and about 1,000 years ago they began managing the water to transform the swamps into something – that doesn’t have a word that describes it in English – but involves land that is not as wet as a swamp, but is still very moist. This land is great for growing English grass, but other herbs get mixed in with the grass as well (by wind or on purpose). The cows that eat this grass with extra herbs make a delicious milk which gives Gouda cheese its unique flavor.
We crossed the bridge from where the bus was parked and walked into the town. I was already smitten – and so disappointed that I couldn’t figure out how to take pictures that captured the charm of this place.
I have a weird LOVE of canals, which absoltuely contributed to my delight. This house had a door that opened directly onto the canal:
Our guide, who grew up in Gouda, told us that when she was young, people would come by in boats to collect the garbage or sell things. They would open their canal doors to interact with them.
I loved that there was a little bridge over the canal that went to the back door.
Here is a closer picture:
This is the street behind the church:
The buildings in Gouda had a habit of burning down, so eventually they decided to build the town hall in the middle of the square.
Here is the town hall made of legos:
Then we had some free time. Our guide recommended this shop:
I ordered a cappuccino and a stroopwafel.
Oh my goodness. The little cookie that had just been baked fresh was perfect. The texture was so unusual. Then I tried the stroopwafel. It was incredible. So soft and gooey and sweet. I couldn’t believe that this one (that cost €2.50) was SO MUCH BETTER than the one I got from the touristy place in Amsterdam for €10. I tried to make time slow down to stretch out the experience of eating it.
Then it was time for cheese.
This little shop had samples of so many different kinds of Gouda cheese.
I confirmed that the sealed cheese in the fridge would still be good until March, and bought some to take home.
On the way back to the bus I saw this car parked in its driveway – on a canal. So cool.